London, UK, 7th February 2011 Ã¢â‚¬â€œ Canon today announces the development of a telephoto zoom lens featuring an integrated focal length extender Ã¢â‚¬â€œ the EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM EXTENDER 1.4x. The lens will be displayed for the first time during CP+, held in Yokohama, Japan.

Designed for CanonÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s leading range of EOS Digital SLR cameras, the new lens will be an ideal addition for sports and wildlife photographers, offering exceptional flexibility with a built-in 1.4x extender that creates an increased focal range of 280 Ã¢â‚¬â€œ 560mm.

Perfect for photographers who require high performance, fast aperture and a flexible telephoto range, the EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM EXTENDER 1.4Ãƒâ€” will enable photographers to shoot a greater breadth of subjects using a single lens, delivering the best possible image quality at all focal lengths.

Developed as a new addition to CanonÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s acclaimed L-series of professional lenses, the new lens will offer an unsurpassed combination of versatility, first-class optical performance and an enhanced weather-proof construction. The model will be released as part of CanonÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s continued development of its EF lens line-up, offering enhanced performance and improved functions that cater for the needs of photographers from beginners through to professionals.

The EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM EXTENDER 1.4x is scheduled for launch during 2011.

Tim

Sure! Canon's been making scores of lenses with built-in extenders for many years now. They're just all video lenses. I have 3 at work, with one costing about $25k (a couple Fujinons with extenders too).

tzalmagor

This lens might be Canon's response to the Nikon 200-400mm f/4 VR, and the early announcement might be an attempt to keep people from jumping brand. This would mean this lens' price would be similar to that of the Nikon (read: ~$6,500), possibly with a premium for the built-in 1.4x extender.

The photo has a metal loop that I think is not a part of the lens, but rather a part of an anti-theft device (the one with a metal wire that has a lock on one side, and a big lump on the other side that wouldn't pass through the loop).

If I'm right, that might mean that the lens isn't just being display (as in, maybe this is just a mockup in a glass box), but a prototype that people can play with in CP+ (Feb 9th-Feb 12th, - in a couple of days), which means production could be significantly closer than Dec 31st.